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Where art thou? I seek your deliverance. Hadn't been writing for a week or so. Obviously I'd been too busy with ThinkQuest, which concluded this morning. Should I be glad, or sad? Really, I had too much excitement for a day, so much so it dampened my spirits and instigated me to stay at home. Thought that I should do a write up or something so as not to disappoint you, faithful supporter, but me brain is wrecked, totally crushed up. I shall leave you with my entry form for ThinkQuest 1999. That way, you will learn about the entry before even seeing it. Till next time.

(Zane, I don't hate you. But you ought to think over it. If you can't do it, you should have told me at least a couple hours before the deadline. It's very heart-sinking to rush out an entire section in less than an hour. But don't you worry. I won't bring along a chopper should we get to meet. Make sure you present yourself very well at the Dutch finals. Awaiting your good news. )

ThinkQuest 1999 Entry Form

Team ID: 25014
Category: Social Science
Entry Title: ES2000 - Endangered Species of the Next Millennium

Entry Description: Please provide a brief description of your entry including its educational objectives. (250 word limit)

"ES2000 - Endangered Species of the Next Millennium" is a project undertaken to unravel the cruel fact that we, human beings, are the ultimate cause of the disappearing Animal Kingdom. Through our content sections, we aim to instill a sense of responsibility in our readers to help curb the worsening depletion of other living species on earth. Users will journey thorough the "What?", "Why?" and "How?" sections, enriching themselves with information about Endangered Species, after which they will be able to test themselves with the sectional quizzes. Other sections include the Species Profiles, where users immerse themselves and get acquainted with the different endangered species that exist throughout the world. The species communication panels allow users to track the latest developments of profiled species through other users. The media gallery houses the images, videos and sound snippets of endangered species that the team has collated throughout the creation of the entry. The entry also features a highly interactive game, whereby users take on the role of animal protectors in search for stolen endangered species, enriching themselves as they plod along the treacherous environments. We present to you ES2000, a comprehensive site on Endangered Species.

Describe the differences between student team members' access to technology (250 word limit)

Galvin owns a Pentium 233 system at home with constant Internet connection through the usage of cable modem, which runs at 300kbps, although the modem seldom reaches this speed. At school, he has access to Pentium 100 systems with Internet connection as well, though he never used them to work on the entry. He owns a low-resolution scanner, which allows him to process photographs and other materials that needed scanning. Helen uses an Intel Celeron 400 mHz system at home with 128 megabytes of RAM and 8.4 gigabytes of hard drive space. Her telephone modem runs at 56.6 kbp. She also owns a ScanPort 36 bit scanner. Zane owns a Pentium 166 MMX system at home with a phone line internet connection through the usage of a 56K modem, which runs at 5.4 kbps, because the connection was through a phone line his average phone bill was $100 during the building of the entry. At school, the computers have no appropriate software so they were not used. Most of the entry was done on holiday on Zane's dads laptop, a 266 MMX with a 56kps modem, and in the last two weeks uploading was done in the local internet café on Crete.

How did your team members collaborate to create your entry? (250 words limit)

Though we are bound by geographical differences, but our hearts and souls aren't. We experience different time zones and it was rather difficult for us to come together for meetings. However, we compromised to meet every Sunday with the help of ICQ. Throughout the week, we kept in touch by sending instant messages to one another through ICQ. We made sure everyone did their fair share of work and encouraged one another through inspiring messages like "I believe in you", "You can DO it!", etc. J

During the meeting, usually held on Sundays in IRC (Internet Relay Chat), each team member would present to the other team members the amount of work they accomplished that week. After which, each member would plan out the work to be completed before the next meeting. This has been going on with short breaks in between since December 1998. Agendas and minutes were carefully planned and typed out, allowing us to look back and smile with satisfaction, seeing how our entry had evolved from simple scratches to a wonderfully designed package, how a initial page of sitemap turned out to be three pages long. Till the very last minute, we toiled hard, in hope of a get together at the finals. The idea of meeting one another really spurred us on.

"Eighty percent of success is showing up."
-Woody Allen

Part Two tomorrow.

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Food of the Day
Burger King's Mushroom Swiss Meal

Colour of the Day
Dull Black